Philip Pearlstein

Tintern Abbey

Maker

Philip Pearlstein (American, 1924–2022
b. in Pittsburgh)

Title

Tintern Abbey
Ruins and Landscapes

Year

1979

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

sugar-lift

Supports

Dimensions

75.7 x 100.3 cm (29 13/16 x 39 1/2 inches) (sheet)

Identification

Edition

21/55

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Arthur I. Rabb

Object Number

80.276.5

Type

Exhibition History

Fantasy, Myth, Legend
Imagining the Past in Works on Paper since 1750
Dec 16, 2023 – Jun 02, 2024

Label copy

In Pearlstein’s print, Tintern Abbey’s arches pierce the sky. Located in Wales near the English border, Tintern Abbey was founded in the 1100s by Cistercian monks. It was abandoned in the 1500s, during the Reformation. 

After the abbey fell into ruin, it began its second life as a place of inspiration for artists, novelists, and poets. In its crumbling state, some of the reality of the abbey’s original religious use disappeared, allowing for more fantastical associations with the building’s architecture and the medieval time period. 

–RN

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Tombstone

Philip Pearlstein (American, 1924–2022
b. in Pittsburgh)
Multi-Editions Press, publisher
Tintern Abbey; Ruins and Landscapes, 1979
Sugar-life aquatint with roulette work, on paper
75.7 x 100.3 cm (29 13/16 x 39 1/2 inches) (sheet)
Gift of Arthur I. Rabb 80.276.5

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